Amidst denunciations made by the press of widespread corruption in Bienes Nacionales, the government department in charge of state property, the Mejia administration announced it would be stepping up investigations into corruption in the past administration. Cases of corruption in the Ministry of Public Works, Department of Civic Aeronautics and Dominican Social Security Institute and the privatization of the State Sugar Council and the Dominican Electricity Corporation will again be brought to the forefront. News sources say the initial efforts of the present government to punish corruption in the past administration were often so poorly prepared that the judges had to throw out the cases. Meanwhile, there is no talk of instituting new controls in government to avoid the continuation of these problems. El Siglo newspaper points out that the government’s attitude is to send to justice those suspected of corruption, but not to be proactive about preventing it in future. The scandal of Bienes Nacionales went public and an investigation was ordered only after TV journalist Nuria Piera brought the proof to the nation during her Saturday evening TV show. El Siglo points out that already in October, the press had published allegations of irregularities in the work of Jose Manuel Peña, in charge of auctions at Bienes Nacionales, but the government did not heed the warning. Five months later, the government is asking Peña to justify how he can have more than RD$1 million in the bank after seven months on the job when his salary is RD$13,000. El Siglo also points out that the government authorities have ignored the claims of corruption at the Oficina Metropolitana de Transporte made by transport union director Juan Hubieres. Nor has the government followed through with the allegations of irregularities in the Customs Department. The director of the Department Vicente Sanchez Baret denied the accusations and asked for names. The Dominican Customs Brokers Association said that an audit would substantiate their claim of widespread corruption in Customs. El Siglo newspaper says that the newspapers criticized the lack of controls at the National Lottery, and businessmen claim they are subject to extortion from Dominican Social Security Institute inspectors. El Siglo newspaper points out that the Mejia administration created the Anti-Corruption Department to prevent corruption with little being done in this direction.
